Grad Core Class Grading

Transition Level Learning Outcomes

ELI Recommendation to Admissions Dept.

READING

·        TOEFL reading (5%). Successful students should score 70% accuracy and 200 wpm speed or higher.

·        Pleasure book: written book report + oral presentation (10%)

Obtain a consistent min. score of 70% reading (authentic academic text)

·        Identify main idea (implied included)

·        Distinguish supporting ideas and details

·        Distinguish fact from opinion

·        Infer meaning of new vocabulary

·        Draw conclusions

·        Draw inferences

·        Identify organization, purpose, and tone of text

Read, summarize and respond to an authentic book (higher than young adult) (min. 250 pages)

·        Comprehend academic/authentic adult texts (such as Newsweek) well (as demonstrated by summaries, paraphrases, etc.)

WRITING

·        Resume (5%)

·        Goals Statement (admissions essay) (10%)

·        Developmental writing:  paraphrasing, summarizing, synthesizing, newspaper assignments, integrated TOEFL exercises, online responses (10%)

·        Research Paper: topic related to your field of study; at least five sources, in-text citations, and references. (50%)

·        TOEFL writing (10%). Successful students should score a 4 on the TOEFL grading rubric.

Write an APA style research paper (approx. 10 pages)

·        Paraphrase

·        Summarize

·        Research skills

Consistently obtain  ELI level 5 (iBT 4) on TOEFL writing

Write several multi-draft essays

·        Obvious thesis

·        Cohesive, well-organized, well-developed body paragraphs

Complex sentence structures (with correct mechanics: formatting, spelling, punctuation)

·        Write consistently at level 5 (ELI scale) (iBT 4) or higher

LISTENING

·        Listening practice from TOEFL and authentic sources such as NPR or guest speakers

From an authentic oral source

(lecture, campus conversation, class group discussion):

take notes:

·        paraphrase

·        summarize

·        with 70% accuracy

in order to:

·        distinguish fact from opinion

·        draw conclusions

·        draw inferences (including vocabulary in context)

·        indentify purpose and tone

·        distinguish between main ideas and support

and respond in oral or written format

·        Comprehend academic lectures / authentic adult listening passages (such as NPR) well (as demonstrated by summaries, paraphrases, etc.)

SPEAKING

·        see Oral Book report for Pleasure Book

·        see Powerpoint presentation for Research Paper

·        impromptu classroom speaking

·        classroom discussions

Formal oral presentation

·        Main idea (intro)

·        Body support (main idea and details)

·        Summary (conclusion)

Impromptu speaking     based on iBT Speaking 4

(Clear, sustained, coherent discourse)

·        Individual

·        Group/pair

Characterized by

·        Delivery:  Well-paced flow with minor lapses in pronunciation

·        Language use:  Effective, mostly automatic grammar and vocabulary use

·        Topic Development:  Appropriately supported thesis with cohesion between ideas

·        Speak consistently at level 3 (iBT) or higher & participate relatively comfortably in conversations